Six cool iOS 6 features for iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch

The big Apple news of recent days has of course been the launch of iPhone 5, but for us, iOS 6 – available for download right now – is the bigger deal. Why?

iPhone 5 is effectively an evolution rather than a revolution, with many new features that are playing catch-up to the oppostion

iOS 6 brings over 200 new features to older iPhones, iPad and iPod Touch

Many of these new features are extremely cool!

We know that a sizeable proportion of our customers use Apple devices, so we thought we’d devote some time to covering these new features. So here are our six favourite new features of iOS 6. Did we miss any? Or are there features that Apple missed? Let us know on our Facebook page.

iOS 6 Compatibility

Before you get too excited, here are the Apple products that are compatible with iOS 6:

iPhone:iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5

iPad: iPad 2, iPad 3rd Generation

iPod Touch: iPod Touch 4th Generation, iPod Touch 5th Generation

Some features in iOS 6 are not compatible with some devices – we’ll highlight those when they come up.

1) Panorama

A clever combination of software and hardware that lets you easily create panoramic photos, the new Panorama feature creates images up to 240 degrees wide or high. To take a panoramic photo, you sweep the phone in a single motion across your vista, then let the software do the rest.

Panorama is available on iPhone 4S, iPhone 5 and iPod Touch 5th Generation

2) Maps with Turn-By-Turn Navigation

[UPDATE] – Since the launch of iOS 6, it’s been clear that Apple’s Maps app is not up to scratch, and even Apple have apologised for its shortcomings. If you use Google Maps a lot, we’d recommend not updating to iOS 6 until Apple gets their Maps app up to Google’s level of detail and sophistication.

In iOS 6 Apple have replaced Google’s maps with their own app. Their maps are vector-based for smooth detail at all zoom levels, and street & place names rotate with the map for easy reading.

Apple’s Maps also features real-time traffic updates, helping you estimate your ETA, see what’s causing a delay, and navigate your way around it if need be. What we’re also excited about is the turn-by-turn navigation feature, confirmed to be available down under in October.

Siri also pops up here, as you will now be able to ask Siri how to get somewhere and Maps will show you the fastest route.

One fun new feature is Flyover - high-resolution 3D maps of major cities that let you explore the city interactively by zooming, panning, tilting and rotating your way around the city’s sights.

This is available for may cities worldwide, however it’s only available for Sydney and Melbourne in Australia (so far).

Apple’s Maps also include Local Search – similar to the Google+ Local search feature, letting you find local businesses, restaurants, entertainment and more. Siri now works with Local Search in Australia too – a big plus!

3) Find My Phone and Find My Friends

If you lose your phone, you can lock it via iCloud and send a contact number to the phone that will appear on the Lock screen, so anyone finding it can call you easily.

Find My Friends is a feature that will have privacy watchdogs jumping up and down!

With this feature you can set permission for certain people to track your whereabouts via your phone…great for close friends and parents, but perhaps a little concerning for many! We can see a few spousal arguments over this one!

A good feature for parents is location-based alerts, that will let you know when a child leaves school or arrives home for example.

4) Facebook Integration

Facebook is now integrated much more fully into iOS. You can now share photos directly from the camera or the Photos app, share your location from Maps, even get Siri to post for you.

Calendar and Contacts get new functionality too, with events and birthdays added directly to the Calendar from Facebook, as well as contact information.

5) FaceTime over 3G / 4G

With iOS 6 you will be able to use FaceTime over the phone network; previously it was limited to WiFi only.

You can now video call wherever you are – but beware of network data charges!